 |
| Maple leaves in my backyard |
I report to you that, in adolescents today, the metaphysical impulse has not gone away. When my philosophy students are introduced to some of the Big Questions (for example) they are interested. Some are captivated. Even those who have nothing to do with the Entertainment Church or the Relevant Church open their eyes, ears, and hearts to Big Question discussions. The mostly unfulfilled inner-Pascalian abyss remains wide open and receptive.
The psychiatrist Gerald C. May, in his amazing, thrice-read book Addiction and Grace, observed that “after twenty years of listening to the yearnings of people’s hearts, I am convinced that human beings have an inborn desire for God. Whether we are consciously religious or not, this desire is our deepest longing and most precious treasure.”
Religion is not going away. Inner longing for something more is intrinsic to humanity. The human heart is like a throne wanting to be occupied, and our world has many pretenders to it. As someone who follows Jesus, because I am "made in God’s own image, God will find a way to fulfill that deepest longing. Prayer is that way." (Philip Yancey, Prayer, Kindle Location 237)
Praying to the God who is there has proven to be my consolation in this world of desolation.
